


So Many Flowers

by HMSquared



Series: Split [4]
Category: jacksepticeye
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Cliffhangers, Death, Hanahaki Disease, I'm not writing a sequel, M/M, Painkillers, kind of, twist ending, wham line
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-08
Updated: 2019-02-08
Packaged: 2019-10-24 17:14:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17708369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HMSquared/pseuds/HMSquared
Summary: Anti stays behind while Jack and the other egos go on a trip, but it’s not really his choice.





	So Many Flowers

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Filled With Flowers](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5826268) by [QueenTrickster](https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenTrickster/pseuds/QueenTrickster). 



> I find hanahaki SO fascinating, and I finally decided to write a story about it. I used the tag Sean/Sean because...well, you're going to have to read to the end.
> 
> Enjoy!

Jack was excited as the plane touched down. He, Chase, and Dr. Schneeplestein had gone to visit Mark for a few weeks in California, and now they were returning home. They had loved making videos together, but all good things must come to an end at some point.

The only people not on the plane were JJ and Anti. JJ had offered to stay behind and help Mark with some of his videos since he was swamped. Mark had agreed, and it was decided they would come to visit (or in JJ's case, return home) in three months. And Anti...well, his absence was a little more complicated.

Anti was sick. Or, at least, that's what he had told Jack. He had complained of a sore throat and nausea. Dr. Schneeplestein hadn't been able to diagnose an issue, but he had decided it would be best if Anti rested for several weeks. Personally, Jack thought he was scared of seeing Dark, but had allowed it.

As they grabbed their luggage, Jack texted Anti. He had recently gotten the demon a cell phone, and right before they had left, he had explained how to use it. Anti had been even more irritable than usual, something Chase had declared wasn't possible.

_We just touched down and should be home in 30 minutes. Can't wait to see you!_

Despite their past, Jack made an effort to be polite with Anti. He tried to be nice, but if Anti didn't want to talk, he wouldn't press. Chase didn't like this approach, but ever since their  _Dark Silence_ video a while back, he had made an effort to be kind. Dr. Schneeplestein simply ignored Anti, occasionally cursing under his breath in German.

By the time they got the car and were on the road, Anti hadn't texted back. Jack was riding shotgun, Chase in the backseat. Dr. Schneeplestein was driving, and thankfully he was better at it than being a doctor. Chuckling at that comparison, Jack tried again.

_We've got the car and are on the road. See you soon!_

"You seem nervous, Jackieboy," Chase chuckled. Jack rolled his eyes; it would seem the so-called "Bro Average" had learned a few things from Anti.

"Just wondering why Anti hasn't texted back yet."

"Maybe he doesn't know how to use it." Jack shook his head.

"Maybe that nincompoop is too busy breaking everything to notice," Dr. Schneeplestein snapped. "Excuse my French." Jack smiled. He loved his friend's jokes but was still worried. 

They got home without any issues (thought Dr. Schneeplestein had yelled at a driver in rapid German which Chase refused to translate for Jack). Grabbing his suitcases, a smile on his face, Jack opened the door.

"We're back!" he shouted. No response. Jack's smile widened. "Anti, I know you can hear us!" He didn't know that at all.

Chase slammed into Jack, nearly knocking him over. He started to apologize, then froze. Looking at the counter in front of him, he muttered,

"Oh, no." Sitting on the counter was an empty orange pill bottle. It matched one of the bottles from Dr. Schneeplestein's medicine cabinet, and upon further examination, Jack discovered it was a painkiller. 

An empty shot glass sat upside down in the drying rack. Looking at both items, Jack traveled down the hall to Anti's room, dread filling him.

Chase found Jack trying the doorknob: locked. Looking at him, Jack whispered,

"Can you get the lockpicking kit in my room?" Chase nodded. They all had lockpicking kits in case of emergencies, and Jack had been learning how to use his. Chase returned with the box, and he carefully picked the lock, working quickly but smoothly.

The lock gave. Handing Chase the kit, Jack slowly opened the door, swallowing.

"Anti?" He trailed off. Returning the kit to where he had found it, Chase closed his eyes and exhaled. Preparing himself, he walked to Anti's room...then gasped.

Anti was lying on his bed, eyes shut in a sleep from which he would never wake. However, that wasn't what scared Jack or Chase. He was surrounded by blue flower petals, cherry blossoms of an unnatural color. Joining them at the door, Dr.  Schneeplestein murmured,

"Hanahaki." Chase silently nodded. They all knew what hanahaki was; JJ had done some research on it. Suddenly the sore throat and stomachache made sense.

Jack closed his eyes and memories flashed through him. He saw Anti barfing, flowers slowly filling the room. He had made a slow, full circle around his bed over the course of a week, covering the floor. That morning, he had clawed open the medicine cabinet and taken the pills, muttering just before swallowing,

Ȋ͖͔͠'m ̧̹͖̘̉͌̊̏n̮̙͎̽͆̋ő̢̦̘̖̋͡͡t̞̣͂͒̍͜ ̫̦̝̯̼̈́̑͋̉̊dy̢͍̣̽̀͌i̻̙̠̿̓̾n̪̟̱̒̐̒g̢̫͉̠͑̂̓̍ ͉̺̊i̧̲̮͗̆́n̲͛͛̐͢ͅ pa̲̔̔̉͜ͅi̺̱͛ͅṅ̢̞̖͋̑͜.̹̻̇̌̈͜

Even without these memories, Jack knew he had caused Anti's hanahaki. The demon had been looking at him strangely the past several weeks, but he had ignored it. He had told himself they would remain friends. How could Jack have been so stupid? He had broken Anti's heart.

As they stood there, thinking about what to do, Chase suddenly coughed. A single, black petal fell from his mouth, tumbling to the floor and landing among the blue ones. They all watched it in horror, Jack and Dr. Schneeplestein slowly turning to look at their friend.

"How long?" Dr. Schneeplestein asked. Chase swallowed.

"A few days." The doctor rose an eyebrow. "Okay, a week." Jack looked at him, slowly raising an eyebrow. "Anti..." There were tears in Chase's eyes. "He..." He couldn't finish. 

Chase sunk to the floor, coughing again. He sobbed in pain, partly physical and partly emotional. Jack kneeled, giving him a silent hug.

Love was filling them all, flowers blooming in their hearts. Dr. Schneeplestein's were orange, matching the color of Chase's hat, and Jack's were a bright blue, matching the color of the doctor's uniform.

**Author's Note:**

> I was originally going to have Jack in love with Chase and Dr. Schneep in love with Jack, but I loved the line about the color of Jack's flowers. Also, Anti wasn’t drinking; the shot glass had water in it for swallowing the pills.
> 
> Please comment!


End file.
